Examination appointment

It is our preference that we see people for the first time at an examination appointment.

During this appointment the dentist is able to identify what issues are present in your mouth and discuss with you the different treatments available.

For this appointment 20 minutes is set aside. We ask that you arrive 5 to 10 minutes early so that we may enrol you and also get you to fill out a medical questionnaire.

It is usual that at the examination appointment 2 x-rays will be taken. These enable the dentist to view what is going on under your fillings and also between your teeth. Often other x-rays will need to be taken to check for abscessing teeth, the angle or shape of the root of your teeth, or to check the bone level around a tooth.

There is an additional charge for these x-rays but as few as possible will be taken.

The rest of the examination consists of the dentist checking your teeth, gums and soft tissues. Then it is usual for a clean to be done.

The cleaning of the teeth can be a little uncomfortable. Unfortunately plaque may have accumulated below the gum level around the teeth. Removing this will expose the tooth root to the oral environment and this can be sensitive initially.

A lot of people also comment that the cleaning makes their lower front teeth feel rough. This is because plaque will often grow and fill the gaps in between these teeth and so they will feel smooth. The cleaning will clean out the gaps. It will seem initially strange, but this is perfectly normal.

Most often, teeth can be cleaned in one session. However, sometimes it may be necessary to organise another session to get the teeth thoroughly cleaned.

Once the cleaning has been performed the dentist will usually discuss with you the problems and offer the treatments which they recommend.

To learn more about the services we provide, please click below.

Emergency appointments

Each day we put aside some appointment times to sort out any dental emergencies, such as swollen faces, severe toothaches or badly broken fillings which are causing pain.

If you are experiencing pain from your teeth the dentist may need to ask you several questions which will help with the diagnosis.

These questions include

• which tooth is causing the problem?

• have you had this problem before?

• how long has it caused a problem?

• what makes the tooth sore?

• what takes away the pain?

• how much pain are you in?

• what kind of pain is it- for example a short sharp pain or a dull throbbing pain?

• does the tooth wake you up at night?

• does it hurt when you bite together/release your bite?

To learn more about other services we provide please click below.

Safety

Raymond and David have undergone emergency training to NZRC modular certificate level 4.